Replenisher



March 9, 1926. 1,575,845

B. P. JOYCE REPLENISHER Filed Dec. 5 1924 Patented ar. 9, 1926.

BRYAN P. JOYCE, OF DAVENPORT, IOWA, ASSIGNOR TO THOMAS A. CONLON, OF SILVER SYRING, IVIARYLAND.

REPIIENISHER.

Application filed December (GRANTED UNDER THE ACT OF T 0 (ZZZ whom 2'2. may concern:

Be it known thatI, BRYAN P. JOYCE, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Davenport, county of Scott, and State of Iowa, have invented an Improvement in Replenishers, of which the following is a speciflea-tion.

The invention described herein may be used by the Government or any of its oflicers or employees in prosecution of work for the Government, or by any other person in the United States without paymentto me of any royalty thereon, in accordance with the act of March 3, 1883.

The subject of this invention is a replenisher int-ended primarily for use with the recoil mechanisms of guns but not restricted thereto. 7

In order to maintain a constant pressure ina cylinder, provision must be made to compensate for expansion and contraction of the contained fluid due to changes in its temperature. Accordingly, the present invention contemplates the provision of an expansion chamber whose volume is automatically regulated by a movable closure in the form of a plunger which is adapted to indicate the internal pressure and to permit ready replenishing of the fluid when neces sary.

To these and other ends, my invention consists in the construction, arrangement, and combination of elements, described hereinafter and pointed out in the claims forming a part of this specification.

A practical embodiment of my invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein Fig. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view through a cylinder equipped with a replenisher constructed in accordance with the invention; and

Fig. 2 is a sectional view on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1; and

Fig. 3 is a sectional view on the line 33 of Fig. 1.

In accordance with the invention there is shown at 5 a fragment of the recoil cylinder of a gun in which is mounted a reciprocating piston 6, provided with the usual throttling orifices 7 for the fluid in the cylinder. The cylinder is closed by a head 8 in which is secured a throttling bar 9.

3, 1924. Serial No. 753,605.

MARCH 3, 1883; 22 STAT. L. 625.)

The head 8 includes a tubular extension 10 forminga chamber 11 exteriorly oi the head and in communication with the main fluid chamber in therecoil cylinder by means of the passages 12. For the purpose of closing the chamber 11 there is mounted within the extension 10 a plunger 13 normally seated against a retaining nut 14 but capable of inward movement towards the head 8 under the influence of its spring 15 when the quantity or the pressure of the fluid in the cham her is diminished. In this manner the variation in the fluid due to expansion and re-- traction is compensated for. The face of the plunger is provided with a packing ring 16 held in place conveniently by a. nut 17.

The stem 18 of the plunger is supported and guided by the web 19 ot' the retaining nut 14, a squared aperture being provided to hold the plunger against rotation during the removal of the plug 20 and the attachment of a pump or screw filler. A by-pass 21 is provided in each Wall of the aperture in the web to avoid the trapping of air in the compartment 22 between the head of the plunger and the retaining nut.

Mounted in the face of the plunger in line with a longitudinal passage is a one-way valve 24 by which fluid may be admitted to the chamber 11 to replenish the recoil mechanism.

For the purpose of registering the quantity or the pressure of the fluid in the cyliir der the stem 18 of the plunger may be provided with lines or notches 25 whose coincidence with any fixed point as the rear face of the web 19 will serve to indicate the state of the fluid.

Vdhile in the foregoing there has been illustrated and described such combination and arrangement of elements as constitute the preferred embodiment of my invention, it is nevertheless desired to emphasize the fact that interpretation of the invention should only be conclusive when made in the light of the subjoined claims.

I claim:

1. A cylinder, an apertured head in one end thereof, said head including a tubular extension to form an expansion chamber, a plunger in the extension, a retaining nut for the plunger, said nut having a squared opening for the stem of the plunger, .1 spring con fined between the nut and the plunger head, a one-Way valve in the plunger, said plunger provided with a longitudinal passage for admission of a fluid, and the position of the plunger adapted to .indieate'the pressure in the cylinder. I

2. A cylinder, an apertured head in one end thereof, said head including a tubular extension to form an expansion chamber, a plunger in the extension, a retaining nut for the plunger, aid nut having a squared open-- ing for the stern of the plunger, a spring confined between the nut'and the plunger head, a one-Way valve in the plunger, and said plunger provided with a longitudinal passage for admission of a fluid.

' A'cylinder, an apertured head in one end thereof, said headincluding a tubular extension to form an expansion chamber, a plunger and a plunger spring in the chamber, aoneuay valve in the plunger, said f 'ilungerprovided with a longitudinal passage for admission of a fluid, and the position of the plunger adapted to indicate the pressure in the cylinder.

BRYAN P. JOYCE, 

